Daniel

I know I started a thread awhile back regarding FTS, but I failed to post on that thread, so I'll post on here. I had to take the picture at an angle since the tank is in a cramped hallway (poor planning on my part). As a result of the angle, some of the corals on the left part of the tank cannot be seen. This image is about 3-5 weeks old and I've moved a few corals around since. I'm using a 7 year old Nikon Coolpix camera with the white balance adjusted. I have a few macro shots in my gallery which do some of the corals a little more justice.

Honestly, even smaller sized reactors can handle big tanks. Just raise or lower the flow-through rate and CO2 bubble count to handle a different load. I would plan on getting one rated for at least 150 gallons for your 175. The primary advantage of a large Ca Rx is that you won't have to change out the media as often. My Deltec Ca Rx is rated for 120 gallons (I have a 90g tank) and I have not had to change the media in over 8+ months. I'll probably change it out in about.... another 6-10 months? And I have tons of stony corals! In other words, the media will last for quite awhile, especially if you have under 1000 linear inches worth of hard corals. Your biggest requirements (in order of importance) for a solid Ca Rx: 1) A high quality CO2 regulator! 2) Adequate circulation in the media chamber (with a good, reliable pump) 3) A high quality feed pump 4*) An in-line pH probe is nice, but not necessary 5*) Large rxn chamber to hold a lot of media 6*) Dual chambers (to help limit pH drops) (* = not necessary, just optional) Deltec, Geo, Schuran, and many other reactors will fit the bill for you. Also, you'll be able to reduce your costs if you are able to control/monitor two pH probes through your Aquarium Controller-- I had to buy a $120 pH controller since my Aquarium Controller only had one pH port.

Bill is correct regarding the mushrooms, particularly leathers and rics. You need to either tie them down with string until they attach themselves, or just leave them among rubble with very low flow until they attach themselves. The glue will generally not hold and they will simply slough off at the attachment point.

I use a Deltec Ca Rx. It works very well. Not the cheapest, but does the job. You just dial it in and forget about it. The tuning process may take as much as a week to get right. That's it for maintenance. Make sure you have a high quality feed pump or tap a line from your return pump-- don't use a crappy pump!

I was mounting one of my corals last night using super glue. I ran out of the gel kind, so I was using the regular kind. I was in a hurry, so I put a blob of glue on the substrate, stuck the coral on, and placed it on my frag rack. Normally, I would have waited for the glue to fully dry, but I did not foresee any problems. Well, reef water circulation has a way of tossing things around... a fairly large amount of the glue proceeded to float off. I watched it move towards the sand bed. I was afraid it might land on a coral, but to my horror, my curious yellow tang took a bite. Since the glue was not yet hard, the tang was able to bite into it and form a tight bond as it struggled to remove it. I tried unsuccessfully to catch the tang and after an hour called it quits, since I was only stressing it more. I made plans to take my tank apart the following day so I could remove the tang and try to remove the glue using a q-tip with acetone. For all I knew, the q-tip and acetone plus the stress of removing the glue would kill him. I watched my tang struggle for about two hours last night. He would stare at his nori, writhe in frustration, and repeat. I went to bed last night feeling pretty rotten for sentencing my wonderful tang to a miserably slow death. This morning when I got up, to my surprise, I found my tang was FREE. He managed to get all the glue off his mouth (although I assume trace amounts may still be present in his mouth). He has been eating nori, swimming about, and looks completely normal. Yay. Anyway, lessons learned: *Mount corals outside your tank whenever possible *Wait for glue to sufficiently dry *Aquarium maintenance should not be done in a hurry, since a quick fix could lead to a big mess My tip: Mount corals to substrate (plugs, rubble, etc) using super glue OUTSIDE the tank and use epoxy to mount the substrate to your rockwork Have a good one, Daniel

I run 0" and actively try to remove sand and detritus from my sump and fuge.

I actually agree with the above. Dave, if your lighting (bulbs or photo period) has not changed significantly in the past few weeks, it is unlikely the culprit since your coral coloration issues only started recently. To clarify, it could be your lighting, but it's probably not since light bulbs typically lose their output gradually and not in a step-wise fashion-- thus corals will not respond drastically. Fluctuations in the alkalinity and pH are quite often the cause for bleaching incidents, in my experience, especially with the more sensitive acropora sp. Also, bleaching at the tips of corals along with diminished polyp extension are often the result of what I call "alk burn" (due to alk swings). Consistently optimal levels of Ca/Alk/Mg/pH are the best way to ensure proper coral coloration. Right now, your Alk and pH are not optimal and should be addressed. However, I would avoid making any quick corrections. Gradually bring your alk up to 8-10 and your pH down to 8.0-8.3.

I have been using Brightwell's BioFuel and Microbacter7 for several months now with good results, at least in terms of coral coloration. BioFuel is basically a diluted carbon source and is a little easier, in my opinion, to dose safely (as compared to vodka). I am currently dosing 11 drops of BF and 14 drops Microbacter7 each day. I'll probably start to move towards bi-weekly dosing. In a few weeks I'll also begin adding some amino acids. This system is analogous (and a lot cheaper) than using PolypLabs' Reef-Resh. I've never had high nitrites and that's even after using dechlorinated tap water for top-offs and lately, for water changes too. Nonetheless, I do have some green/brown algae issues (I have to clean the glass daily, but that's about it since it doesn't grow significantly anywhere else). Anyway, my phosphates remain undetectable on the Salifert test kits (which, like all phosphate test kits, are pretty inaccurate). My advice would be to use coral coloration and algae growth as a guide on how to adjust dosing. As mentioned already by others, stick with one system and stay consistent. You might want to keep a journal to help keep track of things. Edit: Oh, and, I have also noticed that my skimmate is generally darker than before.

Peristaltic pumps are efficient, but they're expensive....which may negate the relative benefits.

That last one looks like a Scolymia-- is it not?

The wrasse is out and about and eating everything I put in the tank. Thanks.

Is this the Harley Davidson in Round Rock or is there one in Georgetown?

PM Sent.

=/